Wound dressings are used for many purposes, including for wounds accidentally incurred, and those incurred to facilitate placement and protection of percutaneous medical devices. In an example of the latter, patients are in some cases provided with an intravenous catheter to infuse medication and/or nutrition necessary for treating or improving the patient's health condition. However, due to the invasive nature of the intravenous catheter, it is also a pathway for the introduction of bacteria and virus. Bacteria and/or viruses that enter the bloodstream via the intravenous catheter can cause infections that result in serious complications to the patient.
At present, there are many protocols, procedures, and products designed to prevent or inhibit this type of infection. For example, one of the primary products used to protect the insertion site and the intravenous catheter is a dressing. The dressing is typically a transparent, semi-permeable membrane attached to the body via an adhesive. In use, the dressing is placed over the insertion site and surrounding area to prevent the entry of bacteria and viruses that can travel into the bloodstream via the catheter insertion site. The semi-permeable nature of the dressing is required to allow moisture to evaporate through the dressing in order to keep the insertion site dry. However, a drawback is that the semi-permeable nature also creates the opportunity for environmental contaminants including bacteria to reach the insertion site when contaminated by moisture. This moisture also provides a breeding ground for bacteria around the insertion site.
Health care providers therefore monitor dressings to determine if they require changing based on a number of factors, including the presence of moisture. For example, health care providers monitor dressings to assess whether the dressing has become contaminated by body fluids or other materials. Some contaminants, such as blood, are highly visible and thus their presence is readily detected. However, many contaminants are clear or semi-clear fluids that are not as easily detected by visual inspection.
Accordingly, there exists a need for methods and apparatus that can improve the detectability of contaminants in dressings associated with intravenous catheter insertion sites, as well as other dressings.